Wikipedia

Rogaland

Rogaland (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈrûːɡɑlɑn] ⓘ) is a county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. As of 1 January 2024, it had a population of 499,417 people.

Rogaland County
Rogaland fylke
County
Flag of Rogaland County
Flag
Coat of arms of Rogaland County
Coat of arms
Rogaland within Norway
Rogaland within Norway
Coordinates: 59°N 06°E / 59°N 6°E / 59; 6
CountryNorway
CountyRogaland
DistrictWestern Norway
Established1662
Administrative centreStavanger
Government
 • BodyRogaland County Municipality
 • Governor (2021)Bent Høie (H)
 • County mayor
   (2023)		Ole Ueland (H)
Area
 • Total
9,377.31 km2 (3,620.60 sq mi)
 • Land8,575.70 km2 (3,311.10 sq mi)
 • Water801.61 km2 (309.50 sq mi)  8.5%
 • Rank#10 in Norway
Population
 (1 January 2024)
 • Total
499,417
 • Rank#4 in Norway
 • Density56.3/km2 (146/sq mi)
DemonymRogalending[1]
Official language
[2]
 • Norwegian formNeutral
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-11[3]
WebsiteOfficial website
Data from Statistics Norway

The administrative centre of the county is the city of Stavanger, which is one of the largest cities in Norway.

Etymology

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Rogaland is the region's Old Norse name, which was revived in modern times. During Denmark's rule of Norway the county was named Stavanger amt, after the large city of Stavanger, and this name continued to be used until 1919. The first element in the name Rogaland is the plural genitive case of rygir, probably referring to the name of an old Germanic tribe (see Rugians). The second element is land which means "land" or "region".[4]

See also: the etymology of Ryfylke

Coat of arms

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The coat of arms is modern; it was granted on 11 January 1974. The arms are blue with a white or silver pointed cross in the centre. The cross is based on the old stone cross in Sola, the oldest national monument in Norway. It was erected in memory of Erling Skjalgsson after his death in 1028. This type of cross was very common in medieval Norway.[5]

Geography

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Rogaland is mainly a coastal region with fjords, beaches, and islands, the principal island being Karmøy. The vast Boknafjorden is the largest bay, with many fjords branching off from it.

Stavanger/Sandnes, the third-largest urban area of Norway, is also a central area for the Norwegian petroleum industry. The area includes the large cities of Stavanger and Sandnes. The municipalities Randaberg, and Sola is also in close proximity. Together, this conurbation is ranked above the city Trondheim in population rankings in Norway.

There are also other cities/towns in Rogaland other than Stavanger and Sandnes. They include Haugesund, Egersund, Sauda, Jørpeland, Bryne, Kopervik, Åkrehamn, and Skudeneshavn.

Karmøy has large deposits of copper (some from the Visnes mine was used in the construction of the Statue of Liberty).[6] Sokndal has large deposits of ilmenite. Rogaland is the most important region for oil and gas exploration in Norway, and the Jæren district in Rogaland is one of the country's most important agricultural districts.

History

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There are remains in Rogaland from the earliest times, such as the excavations in a cave at Viste in Randaberg (Svarthola). These include the find of a skeleton of a boy from the Stone Age. Various archeological finds stem from the following times, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Many crosses in Irish style have been found. Rogaland was called Rygjafylke in the Viking Age. Before Harald Fairhair and the Battle of Hafrsfjord, it was a petty kingdom. The Rugians were a tribe possibly connected with Rogaland.

Culture and tourism

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A series of festivals and congresses of international fame and profile are arranged, such as The Chamber Music Festival, The Maijazz Festival, The Gladmat (lit. happy food) Festival, and The ONS event, which has been held in Stavanger every second year since 1974. The ONS is a major international conference and exhibition with focus on oil and gas, and other topics from the petroleum industry. The Concert Hall and Music Complex at Bjergsted and the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra provide important inspiration in the Norwegian musical environment. Another annual event in Stavanger is The World Tour Beach Volleyball. During this tournament, the downtown is converted into a beach volleyball arena.

Rogaland is home to many natural wonders, like Prekestolen, Kjerag and Gloppedalsura. In Stavanger, there is an archeological museum with many artifacts from early history in Rogaland. An Iron Age farm at Ullandhaug in Stavanger is reconstructed on the original farm site dating back to 350–500 AD. The Viking Farm is a museum at Karmøy.

Government

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Main article: Rogaland County Municipality

A county (fylke) is the chief local administrative area in Norway. The whole country is divided into 11 counties. A county is also an election area, with popular votes taking place every 4 years. In Rogaland, the government of the county is the Rogaland County Municipality. It includes 47 members who are elected to form a county council (Fylkesting). Heading the Fylkesting is the county mayor (fylkesordførar). Since 2020, the Rogaland County Municipality has been led by Marianne Chesak, the county mayor.

The county also has a County Governor (fylkesmann) who is the representative of the King and Government of Norway. Bent Høie is the incumbent governor, in office since 1 November 2021.

The municipalities in Rogaland are divided among several district courts (tingrett): Dalane District Court, Haugaland District Court, Jæren District Court, and Stavanger District Court. All of these courts are subordinate to the Gulating Court of Appeal district based in Bergen.

Subdivisions

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Municipalities

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Rogaland County has a total of 23 municipalities:[7][8]

Municipal
Number		 Name Adm. Centre Location in
the county		 Established Includes (former municipalities)
1101   Eigersund Egersund   1 Jan 1965 1101 Egersund
1113 Heskestad (part)
1115 Helleland
1103   Stavanger Stavanger   1 Jan 1838 1124 Håland (part)
1125 Madla
1126 Hetland (part)
1132 Fister (part)
1133 Hjelmeland og Fister (part)
1140 Sjernarøy
1141 Finnøy
1142 Rennesøy
1106   Haugesund Haugesund   1 Jan 1855 1152 Torvastad (part)
1153 Skåre
1108   Sandnes Sandnes   1 Jan 1838 1123 Høyland
1126 Hetland (part)
1128 Høle (part)
1129 Forsand (part)
1111   Sokndal Hauge   1 Jan 1838 1107 Sogndal
1112   Lund Moi   1 Jan 1838 1113 Heskestad (part)
1114   Bjerkreim Vikeså   1 Jan 1838
1119   Hå Varhaug   1 Jan 1964 1117 Ogna
1118 Varhaug
1119 Nærbø
1120   Klepp Kleppe   1 Jan 1838
1121   Time Bryne   1 Jan 1838
1122   Gjesdal Ålgård   1 Jan 1838 1128 Høle (part)
1124   Sola Solakrossen   1 Jan 1930 1124 Håland (part)
1127   Randaberg Randaberg   1 July 1922
1130   Strand Jørpeland   1 Jan 1838 1129 Forsand (part)
1133   Hjelmeland Hjelmelandsvågen   1 July 1884 1131 Årdal
1132 Fister (part)
1133 Hjelmeland og Fister (part)
1134   Suldal Sand   1 Jan 1838 1136 Sand
1137 Erfjord
1138 Jelsa
1156 Imsland (part)
1135   Sauda Sauda   1 Jan 1842
1144   Kvitsøy Ydstebøhamn   1 Jan 1923
1145   Bokn Føresvik   1 Jan 1849
1146   Tysvær Aksdal   1 Jan 1849 1139 Nedstrand
1147 Avaldsnes (part)
1154 Skjold (part)
1149   Karmøy Kopervik   1 Jan 1965 1104 Skudeneshavn
1105 Kopervik
1147 Avaldsnes (part)
1148 Stangaland
1149 Åkra
1150 Skudenes
1152 Torvastad (part)
1151   Utsira Utsira   1 July 1924
1160   Vindafjord Ølensjøen   1 Jan 1965 1154 Skjold (part)
1155 Vats
1156 Imsland (part)
1157 Vikedal
1158 Sandeid
1159 Ølen

Districts

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Cities

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Main article: list of towns and cities in Norway

Parishes

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Main article: list of churches in Rogaland
  • Askøy (Askø)
  • Avaldsnes
  • Bjerkreim
  • Bokn (Bukken)
  • Bore
  • Bø
  • Domkirken, Stavanger
  • Egersund
  • Erfjord
  • Falnes
  • Ferkingstad
  • Finnøy (Hesby)
  • Fister
  • Forsand (Fossan)
  • Frue, see Hetland
  • Førdesfjorden
  • Gjestal
  • Haugesund
  • Hausken
  • Helleland
  • Hesby
  • Heskestad
  • Hetland
  • Hjelmeland
  • Hvidingsø
  • Høgsfjord
  • Høle
  • Høyland
  • Hå
  • Håland
  • Imsland
  • Jelsa (Jelsø)
  • Klepp
  • Kopervik
  • Kvitsøy (Hvidingsø)
  • Lund
  • Lye
  • Madla
  • Malle, see Madla
  • Mosterøy
  • Nedstrand (Hinderå)
  • Norheim
  • Nærbø
  • Nærem
  • Ogna
  • Orre
  • Randaberg (Randeberg)
  • Rennesøy
  • Riska (Riskekvernen)
  • Røldal (in Hordaland after 1848)
  • Sand
  • Sandeid
  • Sandnes
  • Sankt Johannes, Stavanger
  • Sankt Petri, Stavanger
  • Saude (Sauda)
  • Sjernarøy
  • Skjold
  • Skudenes
  • Skudeneshavn
  • Skåre
  • Sokndal
  • Sola (Sole)
  • Soma
  • Stavanger
  • Strand
  • Suldal
  • Sørbø
  • Talgøy (Talgje)
  • Tananger
  • Time (Lye)
  • Tjora
  • Torvastad (Torvestad)
  • Tysvær
  • Utsira
  • Utstein Kloster
  • Varhaug
  • Vats
  • Vedavågen
  • Vikedal
  • Vår Frue, see Hetland
  • Åkra
  • Åkra (old)
  • Åna-Sira
  • Årdal
  • Egersund Branch (LDS, 1899–1913)
  • Haugesund Branch (LDS, 1905–1950)
  • Stavanger Branch (LDS, 1850–1938)
  • Stavanger (Dissentermenigheter: Stavanger, Klepp, and Haugesund 1859–1903)
  • Stavanger (Vennenes Samfund- Quakers, 1821–1951)

Villages

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Main article: list of villages in Rogaland

Former municipalities

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Main article: List of former municipalities of Norway

Education

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Higher Education

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Demographics

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Religion in Rogaland[9][10]
religion percent
Christianity
 
 85.47%
Islam
 
 1.53%
Buddhism
 
 0.24%
Other/atheism
 
 12.76%

Total population:[11][12]

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1951211,512—    
1961239,052+13.0%
1971268,684+12.4%
1981305,490+13.7%
1991337,906+10.6%
2001375,225+11.0%
2011436,087+16.2%
2021482,645+10.7%
2031 (est.)
594,278+23.1%
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Rogaland is a playable region within Norway in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, called Rygjafylke in the game. It is also the homeland of the game’s main character, Eivor Varinsdottir.

References

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  1. ^ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. ^ "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  3. ^ Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (2023-01-26). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
  4. ^ Store norske leksikon. "Rogaland" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2016-07-21.
  5. ^ "Civic heraldry of Norway – Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 2016-07-05.
  6. ^ "Origin of the copper of the statue of Liberty". Statue-de-la-liberte. Archived from the original on 2017-08-15. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  7. ^ List of Norwegian municipality numbers
  8. ^ moderniseringsdepartementet, Kommunal-og (October 27, 2017). "Nye kommune- og fylkesnummer fra 2020". Regjeringen.no.
  9. ^ "Statistics Norway – Church of Norway". Archived from the original on July 16, 2012.
  10. ^ "Statistics Norway – Members of religious and life stance communities outside the Church of Norway, by religion/life stance. County. 2006–2010".
  11. ^ Statistics Norway.
  12. ^ "Statistikkbanken". Archived from the original on 2012-05-26.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rogaland.
 
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Rogaland.
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